


Vini Varietali

by troisdent



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alcohol, Kissing, M/M, Underage Drinking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-22
Updated: 2015-02-22
Packaged: 2018-03-14 12:05:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3409958
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/troisdent/pseuds/troisdent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's not a true friendship until you've made out on a roof at least once.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Vini Varietali

Nico was a little blip of dark on the roof of the Big House. He seemed like Erebus in comparison to the warm light shining on the pale shingles underneath him, especially in the gentle orange of the sun setting. The shadows sat by his feet comfortably, curling around him in ways that definitely weren't caused by any type of shade, and it made Will feel twitchy. He shifted uneasily from where he stood looking up, deep thought bringing him back into the worry of Nico almost fading again. It wouldn't happen- not without Nico greatly overusing his powers- and Will _knew_ it, but the idea still continued to be entertained, like an itch that he wasn't quite able to scratch.

Nico hadn't noticed him yet, despite his notably good hearing and eyesight and his tendency to survey his surroundings for no good reason. Will was sort of put off, honestly, but not enough for his want to join him on the roof to diminish.

He walked closer and stood on his tiptoes to grab ahold of the Big House’s storm drain. If he had been any shorter he wouldn't have been able to reach, which made him wonder how the hell Nico had even gotten up in the first place. The drain was flimsy under his fingers and way too weak to hold him. Will let go, furrowing his brow at the pipe. There went that plan.

A familiar snort of laughter had his gaze trailing up. Nico was sitting right by the edge of the roof and resting his chin casually in the palm of his hand. “What did it ever do to you?” he said.

Will frowned. “Pardon?”

“You are _glaring_ at a _drain pipe_ ,” Nico said. Will couldn't see if his lip was twitching or not from the way the shade hung around his cheekbones, but his tone of voice was teasing. It was enough to make him grin.

“Oh, yes,” Will said, waving a hand flippantly, “it tried to insult my father. Practically patricide to let it off the hook.”

Okay, Nico's mouth was _definitely_ twitching now. Will felt warmth in his stomach. This was the most relaxed Nico had been in a while, which was sort of weird, yeah, but it’s not like Will could _complain_. He could write it off as his dad answering his prayers out of annoyance, if anything.

Nico extended a hand and Will took it, pulling himself up onto the roof. He was once again struck by how weirdly strong Nico's grip could be, even if he had let leverage do most of the work. He was probably one hundred pounds heavier than the kid, what the heck. How is that _possibly_ fair.

Will had to make a conscious effort to let go of Nico's hand once he got up, and then another to not immediately grab his hand again once he had. The way that their hands slotted against each other was a weirdly nice sensation (Nico's small hand was rough and calloused but really warm, _gods_ , why,) but he had to maintain his reputation of not being a total dope twenty-four seven, thanks. Nico even feeling comfortable enough to touch him made him feel dopey anyways, so he guessed that that was a failed mission.

It had been three years since the war with Gaea already (Will nearly had to count on his fingers to remember; that wasn't really a subject he liked to reference) and he had steadily gotten closer to a plethora of people. The seven, his roman siblings, the Athena cabin, Nico… he was proud of it. Will had always been able to name all of the people at Camp Half-Blood, but he’d never quite known as many birthdays and favorite colors as he did now. He had used to felt guilty that he knew them but didn't really _know_ them, so a change to that was very welcome.

His and Nico's closeness specifically tended to make Will proud. He knew that Nico wasn't a prize to be won, _of course_ he wasn't, no way, but he had spent so long with an itch to know him in the back of his mind that he was infinitely grateful when he actually got the chance.

The itch hadn't gone away, though. It seemed to be even stronger than usual, these days, and sometimes made his heart start beating way too fast, or his skin to get clammy, or his ears to get way too hot, or for him to start-

A soft tapping noise brought him out of his thoughts. Nico had scooted away a bit, farther from the side of the roof, and was absently rapping a rhythm into a shingle with his nails as he stared at the sunset. Will hadn't noticed it from the ground, but a wine bottle sat by his lap, cork nowhere to be seen. A flush of realization hit him when he noted a slight pinkness to the dark skin of Nico's cheeks.  
  
There was that twitchy feeling again, this time in Will’s fingertips. He wondered if Nico would be too bothered by him asking if something was wrong, giving him a hug if something _was_.

Nico seemed to notice his worry immediately, his mouth crooked into a little smile. Will mentally berated him because, gods, stop being cute, he’s trying to fret and you’re ruining it with your dumb face, Nico.

“I’m not drinking because of any real reason, yeah?” explained Nico, the smile getting even wider at the sight of Will’s frown, “I like red wine, the Stolls had some, they let me have it. Sometimes being drunk is _fun_.”

Will figured he should be surprised at how easily Travis and Connor had gotten alcohol into camp and then sold it to a minor. He was not. Will raised an eyebrow. “Are you suggesting that _I’m_ the party pooper?”

Nico grinned, his slanted eyes turning into half-moons, and Will felt the itch _again_. It was honestly becoming very uncomfortable. Nico’s skin had turned a very dark olive tone over the three years, opposing his former grey-green, and his grown-out hair was flicking out off his hair in messy tufts. Will felt the fervent urge to touch them, maybe. Or maybe just to brush his hair for him? The kid had no idea how to take care of himself, truly. The burn of worry was getting worse.

Nico’s smile faltered slightly at Will’s frown. “I’m not feeling bad,” said the slightly younger boy, resolutely, and then again, “I’m _not_ feeling bad. Not at all. If I had felt bad d’you think I’d have even let you up here?”

 _No way_ , Will thought, and that settled it. Will was in no way arrogant enough to assume that Nico would've let him close if he hadn't been feeling well. He was too stubborn for that, even for someone he'd probably willingly call his friend.

Will shifted closer, moving to sit cross-legged beside Nico. There was an inch between their thighs and Will’s brain turned to mush at the idea of them brushing, even a little bit. Nico didn't seem perturbed by the closeness at all, instead picking up the bottle and then throwing his head back to drink straight from it.

He wiped at his mouth and then shook it a little, as if to draw Will’s attention to it. “Want some?”

Will laughed, loud and short, feeling pretty cheerful now that he knew he hadn't caught Nico in a bad place. “You have no cups,” he said.

Nico shrugged, his brown eyes twinkling contently. “You just… bottom’s up.” He jittered the bottle a bit more, as if it was a demonstration. “It’s honestly not that hard.”

“That is _unsanitary_.”

“Not if you aren't a _weenie_.”

Will couldn't help but laugh at that, not with Nico smiling too, and he nodded in consent. He made a grabby motion for the bottle and Nico yielded, then clapped him affectionately on the back when he took a swig.

It’s aftertaste made him stick out his tongue and shudder (which made Nico laugh, go figure.) He didn't really like wine, hadn't tried it outside of a few sips from his mom’s glass on New Years, and the only time he had gotten drunk before this had been on some Bud Light that Cecil and Lou Ellen had stolen from one of their parents. It was pretty fucking gross. He took another drink anyways.

Nico took the bottle gently out of his hand, accidentally skimming his palm against Will’s knuckles in the process and making Will’s ears turn red. Nico grinned his apology at the action (though, honestly, Will kind of wanted him to do it again, for longer) and took a long drink. He passed it back to Will again.

That continued on for a little while, them just watching the sky and making light conversation, the orange-pink of the sunset slowly creeping into black. Will’s brain began to cloud after the sixth sip. When he, Lou and Cecil had gotten drunk he had gotten loud and inhibitionless (and all three of them had made out with each other by the end of the night, regardless of Lou being gay and Cecil being aromantic. That had certainly _happened_ , though none of them really wanted to comment on it.) Now, though, his mind felt slow and heady. He felt calm and warm and content, and when Nico scooted closer to him so that he could rest his head on Will’s shoulder he couldn't even try to stop his heart from thumping painfully against his chest. Nico's dark hair tickled his collarbone.

“This is nice,” said Nico, his voice more of a contented sigh than it was anything else. If anything, Will’s heart sped up even more. He shivered, slightly, suddenly hyper-aware of the hard shape of Nico's body pressed into his side. Will knew he shouldn't say anything. The alcohol and the sheer closeness of Nico's presence was making his thoughts all muddled. He was too choked up. But what if Nico thought he was angry at him if he didn't reply, or something?

So Will tried to speak. “I really, _really_ like you.” And royally fucked it up.

Nico jolted away from Will in a millisecond and whipped around to face him. His face was red, and he squinted his eyes at Will appraisingly, like he was a puzzle. Will curled slightly under the intensity of his stare, instantly sure that he was the biggest fuck-up in the universe and that Nico wouldn't talk to him ever again.

Nico bit his lip, blinking rapidly, almost like he was confused, then exhaled shakily and whispered a tiny, “Fuck.”

...And then he slid right into Will’s lap, hands cupping his cheeks. Will’s brain promptly stopped working.

“Wait, what are you-” began Will, and then was cut off by Nico’s lips brushing up against his own. It was just a fraction of skin against skin, really. Will could almost pretend Nico hadn’t done it on purpose. Then Nico kissed him again.

The kiss was firm and soft, making Will’s brain fizzle and his hands immediately find their way to Nico's thighs. He pressed back into it immediately, but the progress of it ended there. It was just chaste, almost maybe sort of platonic, and Will had no real desire for it to get any more heated than that. His arms pushed their way up to the other boy’s waist, pulling him closer. Nico must have had the same idea, because his calves squeezed even harder into their bracket around Will’s thighs. Nico's fingers stuttered on on his cheekbones, cradling his jaw in a breathless way that made Will _melt_.

The hot feeling of Will’s chest and brain was only sidecut by the burning in his lungs, making him pull away. They breathed heavily together, noses almost touching. Will eyed Nico’s lips, all red from both the wine he hadn't managed to wipe off and their kiss. He suddenly wanted to kiss him again, but wasn't given the chance.

Nico’s forehead thunked into Will’s chest as he let out a strangled groan. “Sorry,” he mumbled, voice muffled by Will’s camp t-shirt, “I had a lapse in judgement. It’s okay if you wanna disown me, or whatever.”

“ _Disown_ you,” Will marveled, sorely confused at the very idea. That was probably the last thing he wanted to do at the moment. Why were they not still kissing? He wanted to kiss.

Nico untangled himself from Will’s arms and sat back down beside him, face red and twiddling his fingers nervously. After a moment of silence, he spoke again, “We don’t need to mention this ever again. Or, if you’re super uncomfortable, we don’t even need to talk ever again, it’s fine, I get it. Though honestly I _really_ prefer the former idea?” He blinked rapidly for a moment and then flushed even harder. “Wait, no, no, don’t listen to me. I’m dumb, I can’t shut up. I probably just made it worse, didn't I?”

It took Will a second to process that, wait, shit, Nico thought that he hadn't liked the kiss. That he was _bothered_ by it. “No, wait!” said Will, feeling sort of panicked, “Wait a second! That’s like, the _opposite_ of what I’m thinking right now.”

Nico frowned, eyebrows twitching. He stopped staring at the sky and the shingles and cautiously made eye contact, to which Will smiled reassuringly. “I don't really want to have the ‘what are we?’ talk while we’re both smashed,” Will admitted, “but ‘please, _please_ kiss me’ was literally exactly what I had meant when I said that I really liked you.”

Nico blinked again. “Really?”

“Duh! I've kind of been blatantly flirting with you for two years, thanks for noticing.”

Nico's face instantly changed from a dejected frown to a small smile, coincidentally instantly boosting Will’s ego. “Well,” he said, “maybe I would've noticed if you had been _better_ at it.”

Will gasped. “God, wow, I’m so offended? I’m, like, king of flirtation, this is actual blasphemy!”

“Will.”

“I am the _seventh son of the seventh son_ of pick-up lines, I’ll have you know. Are you my pinky toe? Because I’m going to-”

“Oh my gods.”

“-bang you on a table later tonight.” Will wagged his fingers at Nico and clicked his tongue.

Nico let out a bout of laughter, jabbing Will in the side with two of his fingers. Will squirmed at the action and fell backwards, only succeeding in making Nico laugh harder.

Nico let out a sigh and stood up, rubbing the tears of hysterics out of his eyes. He still had a wide grin on his face when he said, “I’m going to go to sleep, jerk.” Will felt a twinge of disappointment, if only at the fact that they probably weren't going to get to kiss again, but nodded casually anyways.

“I’m going to wake you up early,” Will found himself saying, “and after that I’m going to nurse the headache you might have if you’re _terrible_ at drinking, and when most of _that_ hypothetical is over we’re going to have a nice long discussion on this night’s course of events and our friendship or relationship or whatever. Cool?”

“That sounds lame as fuck,” said Nico, “but yeah, cool.” His smile was genuine and Will’s itch throbbed terribly with the want to kiss it off his face.

Nico saluted, a mock wave goodbye, and slipped gracefully off the roof. “Go drink some water, loser!” Will called after his retreating form, only to be graced with a _very_ rude and _very_ uncalled for hand gesture.

Will picked up the wine bottle, suddenly wondering how the hell he was going to be able to dispose of it without the Patrol Harpies seeing him and go back to his cabin without Kayla noticing that he smelled like alcohol.

Fuck.

 

**Author's Note:**

> this work contains non-nsfw chaste closed-mouth kisses and i'm still so ASHAMED of it. why does everything i touch turn to gay?? jeez.


End file.
